The Promise of Hope You couldn't Keep
by GreyNightsRoseColoredSkies
Summary: When time gives you second chance, do you take that leap of faith? Or will fate decide for you? The dye has been set before us, but the outcome? Will be far greater than anyone can imagine... *** Rated M solely (for now) on amount of violence, swearing and dark moments.*** ## future Major character Death is advised** #Romance and blissful moments will be required##
1. Chapter 1

_**The Promise of Hope You Couldn't Keep**_

_**Forward**_

They say that hope is promise that things will things might turn around for the better, but I don't remember such a promise being made to me. In fact, on that fateful day... hope had completely abandoned all it's designs on me. You're probably wondering what's with all the doom and gloom right? Well we'll get to that. All you need to know about this story, in the meantime is that though as hopeless as it all seems already.

This is a story of family, friendship and finding love,even in the mist of true chaos. A tale of how we can be our worst selves, but somehow find the courage find our best as well... I know so clique right? I apologize, I'm getting ahead of myself, we haven't even properly introduced ourselves, have we?

My name is Layla Dragneel, yes Dragneel. You've probably heard of my parents right? who hasn't? They're practically legends in my era. My parents as epically cool as they are, (just don't tell them I said that, I don't wanna see their faces gush with excitement. Ugh i think i'll barf later) I'm sorry I lost my train of thought... Oh yeah basically this isn't gonna be your typical Nalu chapter ok? (but don't worry we'll have plenty of cuteness overload)

The main character just happens to look like the picture of awesomeness that is moi! I didn't ask for it, it just happened. (*As the author resist the urge to laugh manically to herself*) Anyways, i'm almost out of script, so let's make this short and sweet as expression goes. If you've ever lost yourself out there, don't worry there's that myth called hope to guide you out of the darkness.

Darkness where death can be found at times isn't for the faint of heart, so if you're expecting to find something wholly lighthearted. You're looking in the wrong places friend. Anyways, i'm kinda getting tired of the comedy act so i'll be signing off. Though this will be the last time we all gather together, I hope (yes I said that appalling word) all your marvelous adventures find you in good spirits and joy always confide in your person.

Ok, I've said all the nauseating things I was mandated to say. On with it already!

**To Be Continued... (Or as Layla states: How to epically suck at writing fanfiction. )**

**Hey Guys! I hope everyone's having a marvelous day! Sorry this is so short, I was planning on writing more, but it didn't turn out that way.**

**This is my first EVER fanfiction story i've ever written. **

**This story has been juggling around inside my head for months, so it feels good to finally put it out into the worldwide net! **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy to your hearts content. Any reviews are always welcome, but please be kind to me! lol **

**About Updates... i'm probably not gonna have a set schedule yet, that may change as the story moves forward. We'll just see what the future holds!**

***All characters, places, etc pertaining to Fairytail belong to Hiro Mashima***


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter One

*About two years after 100 years Quest*

A lone figure stood surrounded by tall grass, blonde tresses all in disarray and bound only by two indistinguishable brown eyes sparkled in the cool, gentle breeze, as she took in the sights below the swaying grass. A small village laid ahead, teeming with people of various cultures. The village itself was nothing out the ordinary, thatched roofs with foundations made of clay and mortar made up the infrastructure of the small town.

Merchants sold their wares while the locals squabbled amongst themselves. Children ran through the streets as they played their makeshift games , their laughter was interlaced only with the sound of pattering feet. Lucy Heartfilia marveled at the sight, she felt a heightened sense of accomplishment knowing that her job request was the direct source of the happy scene laid before her.

As the sun started to drift lower in the cloudless sky, she could feel pinpricks on her delicate skin. After looking into her bag for something that could be used as a source of heat and finding no such thing. Lucy decided to make her descent down towards the village. Navigating through fields of many brightly colored flowers, Lucy found herself deep in thought about the events that transpired before their arrival.

A couple of days prior to their visit, Lucy was in the guildhall sitting in her usual spot near the bar. The early rays of sunshine just started to peak through the windows, as people started to file into the guildhall. Conversations of all kinds rang out like an unrehearsed symphony. Unsurprisingly, Mirajane was the first person she recognized coming through the main doors of the guild, Lisanna and Elfman in tow. Mira was often the only guild member to arrive early, mostly because the upkeep of the bar often kept her busy in more ways than one.

The younger Strauss sister greeted Lucy with short wave before beginning her morning errands. Elfman started walking towards the far end of the bar where a fairly inebriated Cana Alberona had dwelled since the previous night's festivities. Elfman began the arduous task of waking her up, all the while found that it was best just to let sleeping dogs lie. Tap. tap. tap. the celestial mage's fingers started to drum at a steady pace as annoyance seeped into her thoughts.

_He said early! I know he said early, so why am I the only one of our team actually on time! Natsu, Happy where are you? _Lucy checked her watch for the fifteenth time. Sigh, sure enough,_ they_ we're falling 30 minutes behind schedule. Tap. tap. tap. fingers kept up their performance on the cedar wood bar. Normally Ezra and Gray would be joining the fray, instead plans of pleasure we're contrived and hastily set in place.

The other day, Gray strolled in the guild looking like he'd just won the Magnolia lottery. Lucy was telling Levy about one of the many juicy novels she had just finished reading, when Gray casually pulled on her light blue shirt. Gray, for some reason showed signs of a light blush that had put Lucy in a curious state of mind. His hands tucked into his black pants, tried to look into the blonde's eyes, but was having a difficult time doing so.

Lucy wondered if his frazzled state was caused by Juvia. During the hundred years quest, Gray immense feelings for the water mage ran deeper than he ever expected. Reciprocating Juvia's affections in the early days of their friendship never really crossed Gray's mind. Years passed, and in time it didn't seem like such a far off notion to show affections for her in return.

After dating for two years, he believed it was time for a change of pace and decisions needed to be made. He truely loved Juvia with all of his being, she became a bright light into the dark void that was buried deep within his heart. Filling it with the everyday sounds of laughter and pure, unadulterated joy. He had been so set on spurning her very existence, endless ramblings of her sincere declarations of love was enough to set him on edge. Before realization struck him, that annoyance became a solace in which there was no hope of a cure.

" Lucy, can we talk for a minute?" "it's really important."

* * *

**Hey Everyone! Sorry i took a really long time updating. I went into a writer's slump for a bit. But i'm back! Anyways, this story so far is just gonna be told from either Lucy's or Natsu's point of view. That's until my OC girl Layla show's up. I meant to bring up Natsu's presence into the mix, but got Gruvia instead. Writing tends to pull fast balls sometimes. So i'm gonna attempt to write out chapter two so fingers crossed! This is my very first fanfic story ever! so please share your thoughts!**

**Thank you for reading! **


	3. Chapter 3

** Chapter 2**

Juvia became the strange observer of the scene unfolding around her, aquamarine eyes quickly adjusting to the dimly lit corner of the guildhall. Sipping on her favorite chamomile tea, bold flavors of raspberries and ginger seeped into tastebuds. Her fingers interlaced with bluish locks of unkempt hair. She noticed Lucy and Gray neck deep into some sort of serious conversation, a short amount of time passed before both we're seen exiting the establishment. Juvia didn't even bother to follow them out, even though the curiosity she felt smothered her from within. Normally in the past Juvia would put up airs about Gray's time with any woman, much less Lucy.

But she trusted Gray more than she her did before, she knew the extent of his deep love for her. His eyes radiated passion that shook her to her very core. Just thinking about heated lips displayed on hers drove her to the brink of on such scandalous thoughts required more energy than the rain induced mage was prepared for. Gathering her strength, Juvia moved on to the topic at hand. Honestly she knew that Lucy had no designs whatsoever for Gray, other than emotional connection that existed between siblings and close friends. Everyone knew Lucy's unspoken attraction was positively pink in nature, common knowledge among anyone who was a member of their guild.

Any mention of romantic intentions brought up in front of the pair was adamantly shot down. The dragon slayer would often shrug, indifferent to their speculations. His partner was another story, often Lucy would reduce into a frenzied state of denials. An inescapable shade of red would break through her calm demeanor. As Juvia became lost in the machinations of her mind's eye, she didn't notice flurries of pink and blue peeking through the guildhall doors. Noting the lack of cold, blue eyes that often berated him when he was on the verge of some brilliant scheme, or as she liked to put it " utter nonsense that will deprive me of all my earnings,and possibly my sanity in the process." Remembering the sheer fury of those words caused a unwanted shiver to escalate down his spine.

In favor of pushing dark thoughts aside, Natsu Dragneel opted instead to pumping his fists into the the clutches of Lucy Heartfilia's wraith was always considered a clear win any day to Natsu. Running towards the seats at the bar, his charted destination rested in Lucy's now vacant spot there. Terrors of thrashings from an angry Lucy, prevented Happy from reuniting with his best friend right away. But after knowing Natsu was in the clear, Happy decided to fly over to join his companion, since he didn't see the point about being needlessly worried over landed securely on Natsu's head, tail tucked under his blue paws.

Mirajane was diligently cleaning glasses at the bar, when Happy proceeded to order a decent amount of blue herring. That classic Mirajane smile emerged from the kitchen with his request, Happy spoke a word of thanks before diving into his fish. Normally the fire dragon slayer would would find food to be an hot commodity, but things of late shifted into more personal matters of the heart than he would ever care to admit. The comforts frequently divulged in, we're just an distraction to his ever growing afflictions of Natsu found himself in need of pleasant company tonight, instead of nourishment. As the older Strauss sister turned away to help other customers, a tap was felt instead on her left shoulder. Twirling lightly on soles of her dainty feet, Mira could sense something foreboding in his joyful presence.

His glowing, dark eyes emitted some faraway look that could only be described as from ear to ear the fire dragon slayer inclined his head ever so slightly, just enough so that only his voice was evident to the takeover mage. The white haired beauty didn't even have to ask about the details of what was about to be conveyed to her, she knew before he even spoke what those exciting words entailed. After all Mira had a talent for guessing what was hacking away at most people's hearts. It came natural after many years of people drinking their sorrows away in her company.

_"Mira you'll never guess what haul I brought in today, I can't wait to see the look on her face when she finds out." "She'll never guess not in a million years."_

Mira basked in hope that one sentence contained, knowing perhaps the long awaited moment was finally coming into fruition.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**_

**Hey Guys! Chapter two is a go! Yay! finally got around to finishing around 2:00 this morning. I hope you find some joy in this small corner of a chapter update. Hopefully gonna be starting chapter three soon, so fingers crossed!**

**So you're probably asking about what's up with Lucy and Gray? Is Natsu's troubles really what we think they are? Most importantly where the heck is Layla? Patience my readers all will be revealed in due time. I can answer this, just because backstory and plot is so important to me. It'll be a while before main girl Layla comes out to play. I'll give you a heads up when she does. **

**Anyways! Ya'll just have an amazing day!**

**Thank you again for reading! I appreciate it!**

***Again anything pertaining to Mashima's works isn't owned by me* **


	4. Chapter 4

**_Hey Everyone!_**

_i'm so sorry! I haven't been able to update lately, there's such a lot going on lately personally in my life. But sparing the details, i'm hoping i'll find that spark of inspiration soon! I'll do my best for ya'll! I hope everyone is staying safe and germ free!_

_ I appreciate ya'll for reading as always! _

_**" We don't have to know what tomorrow holds! That's why we can live for everything we're worth today,"**_ _**\- Natsu Dragneel**_


	5. Chapter 5

Combing through the endless march of pedestrians , Lucy already felt she was reaching her limit . A shopping ethusiast in the making would fully describe what Lucy wished she could due to Budget restraints, crazy guilds, and of course chaotic dragon slayers, any urge to spend anything of monetary value was quickly thrown out the door. _"Lucy i'm really sorry to drag you out here on your day off." "I mean there are better ways of spending your day off right?"_

Shaking off her reverie, Lucy replied:_"It's no trouble at all! the fact that you chose me to help you with your special task, makes me really happy Gray." _Touched by Lucy's words, Gray extended a word of thanks to her. After a brief respite they decided to find a place to rest, brown eyes suddenly took on the most unsettling look.

_"Besides those two idiots decided to leave me in the lurch this morning anyway." "We we're going to go over extra job requests but apparently he couldn't be bothered to actually show up on time." _ feeling the tension in the air and not much else to say, Gray could only grunt in had known for while what fire-for-brains was up to, he thought he was being cute by being all damn secretive about his recent schemes, and ohhh boy was he wrong.

Gray heard all about it one day, when Mirajane asked him to fetch some more ale in the back store room, he came back the whole unabashed truth could be heard faintly through the lips of both confidants. Unforeseen blush creeping through Natsu's facial features the whole time they conversed together.

The ice mage made his way shortly after putting away his precious cargo, with a smirk that almost looked like it reached his ears_."So Natsu what's this about a confession? I honestly don't think you're man enough to do it."_ Gray felt like pissing him off for some reason but then when it comes to Natsu, does there have to be one?

Natsu's face contorted into an awful grimace, flushing furiously through his bangs._" The way I see it this isn't any of your damn business, ice princess, so why don't you pick a fight with somebody else"_ To which Gray sarcastically replied: _"Hmm, I could, but seeing that you're always raring for a fight anyways.I'll be happy to kick your ass for you, free of charge." _

Which only served to anger the fire mage even more, but knowing that more important matters we're at work here Natsu decided it would be best not to indulge his rage for once. Standing up from his spot at the table, he strode over to where Gray was currently at. Looking him dead straight into his eyes, face nearly a few inches apart.

_"Don't you have some major face smooching to do with your girlfriend by now,why the hell are you bothering me for?"_ half expecting Gray to deck him then and there for his sarcastic remark. He was met instead with pure laughter that seem to reverberate throughout the room, taking the pink haired man off guard._"Face smooching? what are you five years old? i'm pretty sure it's called kissing, you moron."_

His arms crossed his stomach bent over in hysterics_. "Not that you've had much experience with it, you might as well be five."_ Annoyance started to cloud the fire dragon slayer's mind even more, the fact that his comebacks did nothing to other man's as hell to point his fists we're begging to punch his amused smirk off. The icy mage's Laughter cut short after seeing that familiar stance Natsu always took before a major fight.

_"That's right dragon boy! let's do this!"_ Gray's pounded his fists in sheer excitement of what was to come. Already forgotten the take over mage's existence Mira quickly got in between the two,the stormy emotions between the two young men already growing more palpable by the minute. _" Now listen Gray you know I normally don't care about your squabbles, but today Natsu has a really important task he needs to accomplish before noon." _

Turning her attentions towards her intended target, she continued _" Isn't that correct Natsu?"_ Looking directly into her blue eyes, Natsu nodding furiously before quietly exiting the guildhall in search of his feline friend. Mirajane let her arms drop by her sides, giving off the most intense glare at Gray. _" I'll have you know Natsu came to me, asking for help cause the poor dear was beside himself with worry about this." _

Mira abuptly placed a hand on the man's shoulder, blue eyes pleading._ "What I want to ask you Gray is for a favor, I know you find this all quite amusing.""I can't say I don't blame you, but please for their sake can you keep quiet about this for those two,especially Lucy?"_ he sank down into one of the bar stools, his dark eyes glistening in silent worry. A considerate amount of time passed when Gray finally spoke up.

_" Sure it's like Mr. stupidity said it isn't any of my business."_The man's smile suddenly twisting into a hard frown at his own thoughts. _"But if he so much_ _as hurts Lucy, I'll give the ass kicking of the century I can promise you that for sure."_ Mirajane could only smile in lieu of his declaration, self assured that Gray meant "yes" in her estimation.

She thought Gray's protectiveness of Lucy was truly adorable, loved him all the more for it. She felt truly blessed knowing her family would always look after each other, it made her one of the happiest women alive to be apart of Fairytail. Gray nearly jumping out of his skin when Mirajane suddenly burst into laughter._ "I'm sure you're not the only one! "though I can't imagine Natsu hurting her at all, he cares about her too much." _

Wiping the tear off her eye, she grabbed his hand, giving it the most tender of squeezes " But I understand what you mean, thank you Gray I appreciate it." A few light rounds of conversation eased by, nearby the guild hall doors rock anxiously in remembrance of their wispy companions. The sky above looking down above it's mortal land, colors of all shades shift and converge into the darkest of hues.

After giving a word of departure to his lovely friend, Fullbuster started to stroll out of the building when a thought occurred to him. Walking back to the bar, where Mirajane Strauss was currently trying to reach some plates that we're obviously higher than her current height, Gray casually grabbed them for her in her stead. Muttering a word of thanks in return, she presumed her tedious work in kitchen area.

The ice make mage decided to follow her in pursuit of answers. Noticing the young man's presence in the room, Mira stopped her proceedings to give him a questioning stare. _" Gray if you have something to say, I'd rather you just spit it out now, instead of following me like a lovesick puppy."_ A streak of red filtering through his features in embarrassment, Gray's hand awkwardly stroked the back of his head.

_" Sorry it's just I have a hunch and I was wondering if you could prove if it was true or not."_ Fingers gracefully took an impatient place on her hips , Mira tapped her foot impatiently in kind. _" Well don't be shy, tell me what it is already!"_ Gray started to walk towards the counter space, items for cooking we're already sprawled out everywhere. Gray expressions dulled into a somewhat more dour outlook while staring down Mira dead center in the eyes.

_" You wanted me to find out didn't you? about Natsu's plans for Lucy?"_ To which Mira reacted with a smile that couldn't be more mischievous than it already was. _" Well I maybe I did or maybe I didn't, but that doesn't mean I have to tell you dear." _ She then winked at him, and went about her own business. To which the handsome ice mage couldn't help chuckle at her own sport.

Memories started to blend back into the present, body jolting at the sound of Lucy's voice _"Gray, hey you ok? I thought I lost you for a moment."_ Lucy starting to subconsciously twirl her golden locks in apprehension_"Is there something you wanna talk about? you seem kinda distant today,"_He could only nod at her endless stream of questions, patting her head in brotherly affection he shook his head.

_"No nothing is wrong, I promise sorry i'm so quiet today."_ Lucy still had her doubts, but managed a small smile anyways. After a brisk stretch to her legs, being aware not to go down too low because of her blue miniskirt. Feeling like she had a little too much rest time as exhaustion all too readily spread throughout her body.

She was determined to reach the end of this hazardous quest, ready to fulfill the wishes of her friend." It seems like the crowds have eased up a little, let operation engagement commence." all the while punching a tiny fist into the air, looking too cute for words at least Gray thought so. Unspoken prayers hitting his lips on the way for Lucy alone, trying to match the pace of the celestial mage gradually losing himself to his thoughts again._ " I hope that idiot doesn't screw up what really matters in the end."_ With a sigh he put all thoughts aside in his pursuit of Heartfilia's unrelenting strides.

_"Oh well I guess we'll find out soon won't we?"_

_**To Be CONTINUED...**_

**whew Hey everyone i'm back!**

**Sorry I took so long to write another chapter, life has been one crazy event after another and I honestly couldn't write to save my life for a while. Not my best chapter but I wanted to leave you a little nugget behind, before we get into the thick of things!**

**hopefully I can come up some amazing things soon and not leave you hanging for too long!**

**Anyways Enjoy! And have an amazing week!**

**P.S. I know our lovely Lucy seems a little too pissed off than normal at Natsu, but I promise it's for a good reason lol. She sounds too mad to me too. **

*** All characters not mine go to the wonderful Mashima- Sensei***


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